According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune, a Mark Buehrle contract extension would likely result in a trade of Jose Contreras, Javier Vazquez, or Jon Garland. That’s probably the order of likelihood, too.
Contreras is owed about $4.9MM this year, $10MM in 2008, and another $10MM in 2009. Despite the decline in his strikeout rate, that’s a decent price. He’d make a fine pickup for the Mets this year and would be paired again with countryman Orlando Hernandez. It’s difficult to gauge the Mets’ level of interest right now though.
Contreras really wants to stay with the White Sox, though he would waive his no-trade clause if the team wanted to trade him. I imagine his agent or the Players’ Union might have something to say there, because the player almost always gets something for waiving his NTC.
